Funke Akindele has done it again with her new film Everybody Loves Jenifa, a follow up on her successful Jenifa franchise which also produced a TV series.
Everybody Loves Jenifa, which opened in cinemas on December 13, had the biggest opening day for a Nollywood movie, raking in N45.2m.
The movie tells the story of Jenifa, portrayed by Funke Akindele. She is a lady well-loved in the estate where she lives until a new neighbour moves in to steal the show and the love she has from the community.
The new fish in town, Lobster, portrayed by Stan Nze, also runs an NGO like Jenifa, but his is a front for obtaining grants from unsuspecting humanitarian organisations worldwide.
One thing I like about this movie is how the directors were able to convince viewers that Jenifa was jealous of Lobster, going by her effort to expose the shadiness of her rival.
Everybody Loves Jenifa stars the usual characters, such as Shege, Adaku, and Toyosi, and is portrayed by Falz, Omotunde Adebowale David, and Olayode Juliana, respectively.
Others in the star-studded movie include Omowunmi Dada, Jackie Appiah, Nancy Isime, Destiny Etiko, Chy Nwakanma, Patience Ozokwor, Lateef Adedimeji, Bisola Aiyeola, Chimezie Imo, Jide Kosoko, Ayoola Akinyoola, Michael Uba, Tobi Makinde, Hilda Baci, Wendy Ubakanma, Paschaline Alex, D’banj, Layi Wasabi and Cute Abiola, to mention a few.
The film was directed by Funke Akindele and Tunde Olaoye while the writing was done by Funke Akindele, Akinlabi Ishola, and Collins Okoh.
First and foremost, I don’t like how the movie left me hanging concerning Jenifa ‘s Lagos ordeal. The directors failed to explore more on her debacle with Lobster before transporting us to Ghana where Jenifa and her friends had to deal with a dangerous drug dealer who pestered them for a bag of drugs that was thrown into their apartment long before they moved in.
However, I must admit that the Ghana ordeal was a good twist that gave the movie depth and action not seen in the other instalments of the franchise. This is despite me still thinking that adding Ghana as a location was just pure marketing strategy; an attempt to broaden the reach of the Jenifa franchise.
Some part of this movie felt like vibes! vibes!! vibes!!! It’s as if the only thing on the minds of the producers was commerce. That’s why most of the star actors only had cameo appearances, playing roles that any nonentity can play.
Acting in this movie is mid-level because some parts were pushed too hard that they felt unrealistic. Well, since it’s a typical Nollywood drama and comedy wrap, I’ll cut the movie some slack on that.
Despite my perception of the acting, I must commend Falz for making Shege a no-dull-moment guy. I could tell from the reaction of the audience at the cinema whenever he appeared on screen.
Funke Akindele will always do well as Jenifa. That’s because she has mastered the character so well that we can call it her split personality. I must say that the trio of Jenifa, Adaku and Toyosi are what Everybody Loves Jenifa is all about. The other characters, except for Shege and the character portrayed by Layi Wasabi, were just there to give vibe! vibe!! vibe!!!
The costume in this movie is topnotch. The directors deserve applause for the costume used in the carnival. I also liked the concert scene that had singer Lagbaja perform. It looked colorful and showed that Nollywood is no more afraid to go elaborate just to make a statement scene.
The visuals are not bad at all. However, for someone of Funke Akindele’s calibre, a better production should have been employed. She ought to be gunning for better picture quality, as obtainable in About My Father, a Hollywood romance comedy movie featuring Robert de Niro. Put that movie side by side with ‘Everybody Loves Jenifa‘, and you will understand the stunning picture quality. Like I said, ‘Everybody Loves Jenifa‘ is not bad in the pictures department.
Don’t get it twisted. Everybody Loves Jenifa is a fun movie for families to watch, and it is one of the movies that will put viewers in a light mood as the year ends. I believe it will be good in cinemas. I also expect it to slug it out with Funke Akindele’s other movies, which are currently in the top three on the highest-grossing Nollywood movies list. The movies include A Tribe Called Judah, Battle on Buka Street and Omo Ghetto (The Saga). Everybody Loves Jenifa gets a 7/10 simply because most viewers enjoyed it going by the way they giggled.
